Dead Standing

[thewoodlands]

My neighbor is dealing with some wet wood so I went back in for some dead standing, I hauled two loads (not full) to my neighbors house. I decided to grab the MTD 20 ton then head back down to his house to split the wood, split the wood then went inside for some coffee.

I'm not sure what type of wood pic 6724 is but it had nice weight, 6726 is Ironwood that was down but off the ground for two years, the last pics are some not so good dead standing but it will burn quick.

The MTD 20 ton started hard but once it was going it ran great.

 

[billb3]

I can remember not being ahead and not having much for tools trudging through the woods looking for anything I could carry out on my shoulder and cutting it up with a big old sharp bow saw. Hoping to garner enough to make it through the week and hoping for another dry spell. Searching at night by moonlight sometimes. Those aged and bone dry oak sections that looked like 6733 were like finding gold.

 

[TimJ]

way to go zap...............I spent the day cutting up red oak snags. I couldn't believe how much there is and how much I got already.
Hope he gets some good burns out of the wood

 

[Flamestead]

I used a lot of standing dead in the first few years while getting ahead. I'm apt to leave some for the birds/critters these days.

I read a safety sign in a logging shop the other day. Forgot the percentage, but something like 65% of logging deaths due to falling objects. I've had standing deads shed parts and do odd things on the way down, so I make double-sure to keep an eye on them all the way to the ground and do the overhead check before going in.

 

[thewoodlands]

way to go zap...............I spent the day cutting up red oak snags. I couldn't believe how much there is and how much I got already.
Hope he gets some good burns out of the wood

The one pictured in 6733 had some nice weight to it, the kind you like to bring home.

 

[thewoodlands]

I used a lot of standing dead in the first few years while getting ahead. I'm apt to leave some for the birds/critters these days.

I read a safety sign in a logging shop the other day. Forgot the percentage, but something like 65% of logging deaths due to falling objects. I've had standing deads shed parts and do odd things on the way down, so I make double-sure to keep an eye on them all the way to the ground and do the overhead check before going in.

I remember when I posted this pic for the first time, Sav warned me right off so it's still standing. I did go down today but the deer were underneath it so it stands for another week.

 

[thewoodlands]

I can remember not being ahead and not having much for tools trudging through the woods looking for anything I could carry out on my shoulder and cutting it up with a big old sharp bow saw. Hoping to garner enough to make it through the week and hoping for another dry spell. Searching at night by moonlight sometimes. Those aged and bone dry oak sections that looked like 6733 were like finding gold.

I wish we had Oak on our property, the one in pic 6728 was punky in certain spots, good in the middle of the tree.

 

[tfdchief]

Is it maybe Elm Zap?

 

[thewoodlands]

Is it maybe Elm Zap?

Even the good stuff split easy. My top three choices, Hemlock,Basswood or Butternut for the one pictured in 6728.

 

[tfdchief]

I shouldn't be guessing. I don't know the tree species in your area well enough. It looks like some good dry clean stuff anyway.

 

[thewoodlands]

I shouldn't be guessing. I don't know the tree species in your area well enough. It looks like some good dry clean stuff anyway.

Trees on our lot,basswood,cherry,beech,sugar maple,red maple, some silver maple,ash, american hophornbeam(ironwood) hemlock,white pine, white birch,yellow birch,blue beech.quaking aspen some that I might have missed.

It looked like you had a great day to cut with family.

 

[tfdchief]

Trees on our lot,basswood,cherry,beech,sugar maple,red maple, some silver maple,ash, american hophornbeam(ironwood) hemlock,white pine, white birch,yellow birch,blue beech.quaking aspen some that I might have missed.

It looked like you had a great day to cut with family.

Sounds like a good mix up there. Wish I had some of those here. But then you probably wish you had some Oak and Hickory.
It was a good day. I wanted to go today, but had to go to another visitation at noon and then the freezing rain started Sorry I had to leave our conversation the other night, but fire calls interrupt me often....just part of the life I have led for 34 years.

 

[thewoodlands]

Sounds like a good mix up there. Wish I had some of those here. But then you probably wish you had some Oak and Hickory.
It was a good day. I wanted to go today, but had to go to another visitation at noon and then the freezing rain started Sorry I had to leave our conversation the other night, but fire calls interrupt me often....just part of the life I have led for 34 years.

Oak and Hickory, yes we would. I figured you had a emergency of some type, we have great respect for the firefighters.

 

[Gasifier]

Nice work ZAP. That must of made the neighbor happy.

 

[thewoodlands]

Nice work ZAP. That must of made the neighbor happy.

He was right out there with me throwing some rounds for me to split (80+,age) he's a big fan of Ironwood so he did like that.

 

[wishlist]

It sure is good to see you left the "dark" side and sticking to your New Years resolution zap. In the last pic the splitter is set up perfectly like normal people would do!

 

[muncybob]

I remember when I posted this pic for the first time, Sav warned me right off so it's still standing. I did go down today but the deer were underneath it so it stands for another week.

I have a few standing deads that may be coming down this spring. Mother Nature is helping me out with strong winds that are trimming the top stuff off so hopefully it will be a bit safer when I finally decide to get the saw out. Falling branches and if the trunk is solid are 2 things that concen me with standing deads.

 

[thewoodlands]

I have a few standing deads that may be coming down this spring. Mother Nature is helping me out with strong winds that are trimming the top stuff off so hopefully it will be a bit safer when I finally decide to get the saw out. Falling branches and if the trunk is solid are 2 things that concen me with standing deads.

We have some like the one pictured in 2776, if or when I drop those I'll have a second person back with me. If the winds took the tops off that would be a plus.

 

[Applesister]

I remember when I posted this pic for the first time, Sav warned me right off wso it's still standing. I did go down today but the deer were underneath it so it stands for another week.

Zap what did Sav warn you about? And what do you guys mean by barberchairing??
I have chestnut oak that is dying or dead on the ground and standing dead all over the farm. I should bring DEC in a see whats going on but my father always hated DECs intervention.
My brother in law cuts the big stuff for me and he tried to cut down a standing dead but the rot punk made his wedge cuts work unpredictably and the tree came down in the opposite direction. Or I should say it snagged on the tree next to it and its still standing. We could rope it and winch it but we just left it. hoping winds would drop it.
Even after Sandy its still hung up.

 

[Applesister]

Apparently the rot is something you cant see or predict. But I would still prefer to cull these trees over live ones.
What do you guys say.

 

[thewoodlands]

(broken link removed to http://loggingsafety.com/content/barber-chair-tree-kills-logger-0)

On the dead standing tree pictured in 2776 Sav warned me about the top part being rotten. I usually will check the top the best I can with the zoom lens on the camera or the binoculars.

I had a White Birch that I noticed was breaking off near the top using the camera zoom, it's still standing.

 

[thewoodlands]

Apparently the rot is something you cant see or predict. But I would still prefer to cull these trees over live ones.
What do you guys say.

Most of what I take mother nature felled or uprooted. We had a micro burst in 2008, I only have one cherry left that needs to come down which is hung up on some other trees.

I do burn Hemlock for our shoulder season wood, years of that still down.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Zap what did Sav warn you about? And what do you guys mean by barberchairing??
I have chestnut oak that is dying or dead on the ground and standing dead all over the farm. I should bring DEC in a see whats going on but my father always hated DECs intervention.
My brother in law cuts the big stuff for me and he tried to cut down a standing dead but the rot punk made his wedge cuts work unpredictably and the tree came down in the opposite direction. Or I should say it snagged on the tree next to it and its still standing. We could rope it and winch it but we just left it. hoping winds would drop it.
Even after Sandy its still hung up.

As zap stated, that top can be very rotten and it can take very little for some of it to topple over. Even the vibration from the saw many times is enough to loosen limbs and have them fall on the poor soul handling the saw. This is one very big reason why one needs to be especially careful on dead trees. Another point is you don't know how far gone the bottom is. Naturally one has to keep watch of the sawdust but you can also tell much just by the feel of the saw. If it suddenly starts cutting faster than normal, that sends a red flag to you immediately.

The barber chair is when a tree trunk splits on you. You never know how far that split will go. The worst I've ever had was one where the split went up about 12 feet. That one was really scary but turned out well. I have seen some bad ones though. One time I saw a fellow thrown about 12' when a tree split (barberchair) on him. I saw another come very close to being killed from felling a rotten dead tree. Fortunately he was fast enough to just barely get out of the way. His one foot was only inches from the trunk when it came down. Yes, he fell as he was trying to get out of the way. The tree did not fall where predicted. Nasty.

 

[Bret Chase]

(broken link removed to http://loggingsafety.com/content/barber-chair-tree-kills-logger-0)

On the dead standing tree pictured in 2776 Sav warned me about the top part being rotten. I usually will check the top the best I can with the zoom lens on the camera or the binoculars.

I had a White Birch that I noticed was breaking off near the top using the camera zoom, it's still standing.

White birches rot out quick when they die... be careful of those..

I'm cutting a lot of standing dead locust right now... It's dry as hell.... I split some up as an experiment and tossed some in the stove. You'd never know that it hadn't spent a couple years in a stack...

 

[Applesister]

Oh..okay the crown being rotted. Yeah we only had to handle that one tree to see all the hazards. This is a big tree with a lot of weight and unpredictable variables. Nature will have to bring it down. We walked. Not enough solid wood to make the danger and effort viable.
The barber chair is a split tree? Do you mean the release of tension wood?
I dont generally cut trees down. I have but Im usually the one who works them on the ground. I can feel tension in the wood and feel it thru the bar and chain. It feels more directional pressure.
Im thinking you mean wood that "takes off"